Well, I’ve moved to Sweden and I’ve taken the blog with me! Which is to say that this blog has migrated over to my main wordpress account so that I’ll be more likely to update it. Come visit at the new address!!

Decided to start a section on gaffes, because there are so many of them that hit the headlines in this little country. What’s that? Women are baby-making machines? Can only trust folks with black hair? If you don’t what I’m referring to, lucky you for not keeping up with all the ridiculous news of the past several years.

Kawasaki Doctor: At lecutre “Keep on smoking and die early”
A male doctor (55) at the Kawasaki Municipal Ita Hospital (Nakahara Ward, Tsunejirou Kanda Director) made the remark at a Q&Q session for a lecture held on the 7th in Toyama city, “It’s obvious that medical expenses will pile up with progress of anti-smoking compaigns. It’s better to just have people keep on smoking and die early.” Groups for the promotion of anti-smoking have cried out that this was an unreasonable remark to make, unimaginable as that of a doctor who protects the health and lives of people. In response to questioning the doctor has explained that he was unable to express what he really meant and it has given rise to a misunderstanding.

According to the hospital and others, there were 30 participants at the lecture which was sponsored by the Toyama prefecture’s medical association. The doctor gave a lecture on the topic of medical and nursing care. During the Q&A he was asked about the ordinance to prevent second-hand smoke in public institutions that is hoped to be enacted in Kanagawa prefecture and he made his remark in response.

The doctor has explained “because I also smoke, I meant to say that smoking is a matter of personal responsibility but I was misunderstood.” He continued on to say what he’d thought to say was that rather than non-smoking campaigns, more efforts should be put into supporting people who cannot receive medical and nursing care.

Collision between two freighter offshore of Izu Oshima, one ship suspected sunk

According to the Third Branch of the Regional Coast Guard Headquarters two freighters collided in the sea off of Tokyo’s Izu Oshima island at around 2:15 a.m. on the morning of the 10th and off the ships they have been unable to reach one Korean-registered vessel. There were 16 people aboard and the aforementioned headquarters are searching for them, considering the possibility that the ship sunk.
According the Third Branch, the ships that collided were the Korean freighter Orchid Pia and the Cygnus Ace, a freighter registered to Panama. It is said that the Orchid had on board 7 Korean and 9 Indonesian sailors. Contact was made with the Cygnus but is unclear whether there were any injuries.
Considering the possibility that the Orchard sank, the Third Branch has sent patrol boats and aircrafts to the scene.

He can’t keep quiet. Yokozuna Asashoryu (28, Takasago stable) resumed training on the 3rd for the spring tournament (opening on the 15th at the Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium’s hall). He remembers delighting the audience last year at the same tournament by screaming out, “I love ya, Osaka!”and he has said he is aiming for a reappearance. Including him striking a pose and flashing the victory “V” sign upon his revival at the New Year’s tournament, there is much criticism about his over-exuberant attitude, but Asashoryu, unlearning, takes his own stance, in his own fashion.
Asashoryu says that he likes the upbeat attitude in Osaka. He added that everyone is really happy for the March tournament that only comes once a year.
He says with a grin that he’d like to add one more reason why he likes Osaka. “Because I have those final parting words, too.”
This comes from a victory interview carried out ringside. It goes on at every tournament, but when Asashoryu got the better of Hakuhou in their aiboshi (tied tournament score) match, he yelled out in Osaka dialect. “I love ya, Osaka! I really love ya! Thanks for everything!”
But this merry act had not a few critics. Former Yokozuna Taihou, Mr Kouki Naya, says that there should be a weight to the words of a Yokozuna. Although there was once a foreign airline that pleased fans by using all of their local dialects at an award ceremony, he points out, a Yokozuna’s position is different. Ms Makiko Uchidate of the Yokozuna Deliberation Committee also has gone on to say that they wish he would take a more Yokozuna-like attitude.
One of the fundamental principles of sumo is “To not be overly pleased by victory, nor corroded by defeat.” The problem of the pose and the “V” sign upon his return at the New Year’s tournament also remains in the background. At that time, Asashoryu said that he had been too pleased and that he had reflected upon his actions, but on this day he declared that his final words in the Osaka dialect were uplifting. It seems that the Yokozuna who thinks of the traditional Japanese culture and almost godly techniques that make up sumo as a sport has no intention of changing his personal style of showing his emotions baldly.
Asashoryu, who says about his revival “V” sign that he had not only built up emotions but a surplus, exhibits his own style at practices as well. At the practice ring, he has imposed an exceptional regulation forcing just one reporter and cameraman to individually act as representatives for pooled coverage, but Asashoryu declared even to that cameraman, “Get out.” But just when you think he’s angry, he smiles his way through the interview. We won’t be able to tear our eyes away from Asashoryu’s drama in Osaka until the final day.

He just can’t seem to keep quiet. Yokozuna Asashoryu (28, Takasago stable) resumed training on the 3rd for the upcoming spring tournament that will open at the Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium’s hall on the 15th. He still remembers delighting fans last year at the same tournament by screaming out, “I love ya, Osaka!”and he has said he is aiming to reprise that cry. There has been criticism about his over-exuberant attitude, including him striking a pose and flashing victorious “V” signs when he returned to the sumo world at the New Year’s tournament, but Asashoryu isn’t taking any heed of it and he continues to follow the beat of his own drum.
Asashoryu says that he likes the lively attitude of Osakans. He added that everyone there seemed really excited for the March tournament that only comes to their city once a year. He says with a grin that he’d like to add one more reason why he likes Osaka: because he gets to say those special parting words, as well.
These came from a victory interview carried out ringside. The match had been the final between Asashoryu and Hakuhou, who were tied for the tournament as they so often are, but when Asashoryu got the better of Hakuhou this time he yelled out in Osaka dialect, “I love ya, Osaka! I really love ya! Thanks for everything!”
But this merry act has met with not a little criticism. Former Yokozuna Taihou, Mr Kouki Naya, says that there should be a certain weight to the words of a Yokozuna. Although some foreign companies have pleased audiences by using their local dialects, he points out, a Yokozuna’s position is different. Ms Makiko Uchidate of the Yokozuna Deliberation Committee has also gone on to say that they wish he would take a more Yokozuna-like attitude.
One of the fundamental principles of sumo is “to not be overly pleased by victory, nor corroded by defeat.” The problem of the pose and the “V” signs upon his return at the New Year’s tournament also still lurks in the background. At that time, Asashoryu said that he had been too excited and that he had reflected upon his actions, but now he declares that his final words in the Osaka dialect were uplifting. It seems that the Yokozuna who thinks of the traditional Japanese culture and practice of sumo as a sport has no intention of changing his own personal preference for wearing his heart on his sleeve.
Asashoryu, who says about his “V” signs that he had not only built up emotions but a surplus of them, exhibits his own style at practices as well. At the practice ring, he has imposed an unusual regulation forcing just one reporter and cameraman to individually act as representatives for pooled coverage and even with that small number Asashoryu declares to the single cameraman, “Get out.” But just when you think he’s angry, he smiles and the interview begins. We won’t be able to tear our eyes away from the next act in Asashoryu’s unfolding drama in Osaka until the final moments of the tournament.

Ah, I survived. Barely. Now that I’m free from jobs for a couple of days, I’m thinking I should build up a stock of extra posts so that I don’t have another dead period like that. For now, here’s a sizable article about a rather sizable man. I’ll post translations tomorrow, as I skive off from essay writing.

Deadline’s continue to kick my ass. I don’t even remember yesterday. And today I kept thinking it was Thursday. Anyway, this project should be over by the weekend. Here’s a laughable story–if only because it’s so entirely un-newsworthy in any other country. What? A sixteen year old boy with pot? And he say’s he’s smoked it? For shame!

Bad behavior on trains really is tremendously annoying. They’ve put up posters at the station nearest my work and, though I don’t expect them to change anything, it is justifying to hear that other people are annoyed just the same.

From checking online, apparently after those listed on our poster came offenses related to cigarettes and eating and drinking.

Number 1: The way people sit, 24.8%
・People sitting with their legs widely spread
・Young people and the unhandicapped sitting in the priority seats
・People not sitting closely during crowded times

Number 2: Use of cellular phones, 19.9％
・Talking in a loud voice while on the train
・The ringtones of cellular phones being annoying

Number 3: Manners while getting on or off of the train, 8.6％
・People who cut in from the side even though others line up properly
・People who jump on the train without waiting for those trying to get off, creating a dangerous situation

Number 4: Sitting inconsiderately on the floor of the train, 8.1％
・People who sit around the door and get in the way of those get on and off of the train
・People who sit in a circles of 5 or 6 and create an obstacle

Number 5: Being noisy while on the train, 7.0％
・People who create a great fuss and are extremely bothersome
・When parents don’t control their noisy children

Number 6: Noise overheard from music players and headphones, 6.1％
・When you can hear nearby people’s musics during crowded times and it’s an aural annoyance
・The annoying overheard and scratchy noises from others’ music players

Number 7: Women putting on make-up, 5.1％
・The discomfort of the smells and hairs that are scattered about as women make themselves up
・The actions itself, which doesn’t consider the distinction between private and public acts, are unsightly
・Unpleasant even when viewed from the same sex

Sorry, being lazy, still more deadlines, so hardly a natural-reading translation. Yargh. More tomorrow.

Alas, radio silence for a couple of days here. I’m sorry for it and I’ll try not to let if happen again (or for so long) but it is unfortunately within the nature of the work. Deadlines hit hard sometimes. So here’s a little taster of what I’ve been up to. Just multiply it by about 110 pages and have it done in a week, mmkay? -_-;;

A 90 day study of subacute toxicity was carried out using Beagle dogs (each treatment group having 4 males and 4 females) which were orally administered the chemical in the form of capsules (active constituent: 0, 5, 30, 150, or 500 mg/kg/day).
The indications of toxicity observed in each treatment group are indicated in Table 11.
There was one instance of euthanization among the males of the 500 mg/kg/day treatment group, due to the decreased appetite, weight loss, and decline in activity observed in the individual. There were no other instances of death. Within histopathological examination of the individual, hepatocyte vacuolation, erosion of the small intestine mucous membrane, and other indications of toxicity were observed.
Within the males and females of the 500 mg/kg/day treatment group there was a considerable decrease in appetite and feeding time was prolonged. Furthermore, in the same treatment group, there was temporary suspension of gavage administration and administration of the chemical (3 instances).
In this study, as the males in the treatment groups receiving 30 mg/kg or more had increased TG and the females in the treatment groups receiving 150 mg/kg or more were observed to have suppressed weight gain and other symptoms, the NOAEL for males was considered to be 5 mg/kg and for females 30 mg/kg/day. (See reference 2)

Hmm, yet another bit of econ. Perhaps I need to get my mind off of money, but it does tend to take over one’s life, doesn’t it? I’ll try something a bit more fluffy again tomorrow, if I can. Oh, exchange rates–how you play with my heart. And my money.

Either way, a useful way to introduce the phrase 円高, which has been quite the catchword in the past year or so in Japan and probably doesn’t show up in many classrooms or textbooks. Also the obsolete but fun to remember 銭.

直訳 (literal translation)Tokyo market: yen continues to fall, temporarily reaching 97 yen, the lowest price in 3 months
The yen exchange rate at the Tokyo Foreign Exchange Market on the 25th continued to drop, amid the background of worries about the future of the economy and political turmoil, at one point reaching a 3 month low since the end of November of last year of the low level of 1 dollar to 97 yen. As of noon today, at 97 yen and 6 to 8 sen, the yen is cheap and the dollar is stronger by 1 yen and 71 sen.
Chairman Bernanke of the US Federal Reserve Board (FRB) has testified in congress that if the money market stabilizes the recession will be over within the year and sales of the yen and buying of the dollar advanced yesterday, pulling the foreign markets into their current.
The yen has taken a sharp drop against the euro and has been quoted at its lowest level since the beginning of January: 124 yen to the euro. As of noon today, at 124 yen and 88 to 94 sen, the yen is still cheap and the euro strong by 3 yen and 32 sen.

意訳 (slightly more liberal translation)Tokyo market: Yen continues to fall, reaching 3 month low of 97 yen to the dollar
The yen exchange rate at the Tokyo Foreign Exchange Market today continued to drop, amid worries about the future of the economy and political turmoil, at one point reaching 97 yen to the dollar, the lowest exchange since the end of last November. As of noon today, it remains at 97 yen and 6-8 sen to the dollar, leaving the yen cheap and the dollar stronger by 1 yen and 71 sen.
The chairman of the US Federal Reserve Board, Ben Bernanke, has testified in congress that if the money market stabilizes the recession will be over within the year, and yen sales and dollar buys picked up yesterday, pulling the foreign markets with them.
The yen has taken a sharp drop against the euro and has been quoted at its lowest level since the beginning of January: 124 yen to the euro. As of noon today, at 124 yen and 88-94 sen to the euro, the yen is still cheap and the euro stronger by 3 yen and 32 sen.

直訳 (literal translation)Japan to give full support to Green New Deal: next-gen cars, etc
It became clear on the 23rd that the Japanese government has proposed and will agree to give full support to the Obama administration’s “Green New Deal” plan, which will put an emphasis on investment in the environmental field, at the Japan-America top-level talks opened in Washington on the 24th.
What PM Aso is proposing is a “Japan-America energy and environmental technology collaboration,” which would have four fields including the popularization of next-generation vehicles and low-carbon technologies, and it would affirm that Japan and America go on leading the world in these fields. In order for the countries to work together and deal with global scale issues like the world economy and the environmental problem, establishing a new framework to be set up for “Japan-America dialogue” is being considered.
Japan-America cooperation in the field of energy and the environment will have four pillars: (1) plans to popularize next-generation vehicles such as plug-in hybrid vehicles that can be charged using household electricity and electric cars, (2) innovative low-carbon technologies that will allow the drastic reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, (3) expansion of the market for energy-efficient and new-energy products, and (4) the peaceful use of nuclear power.
Specifically, in order to popularize next-generation vehicles, in addition to considering standardization for Japan and America on safety and standard plugs for high-speed charging, they will carry out actual cooperative works for improvement of the infrastructure.
For innovative low-carbon technologies, Japan and America’s research institutes will collaboratively undertake research and development into fixed technologies such as burying the CO2 emissions from factories in the ground and fuel cells and high-powered solar batteries. Energy-efficient technologies will aim for global development through model practices. The peaceful use of nuclear energy has the aim of having a Japan-America joint prevention of nuclear proliferation in emerging countries that are moving forward with the introduction of nuclear power generation.

意訳 (slightly more liberal translation)Japan to support Green New Deal with next-gen cars and more
It was revealed yesterday that the Japanese government will give full support to the Obama administration’s “Green New Deal” plan, which will put an emphasis on investment in the environmental field, at the Japan-America top-level talks beginning in Washington today.
PM Aso is proposing a collaboration between Japan and America on energy and environmental technology which would focus on four fields, including the popularization of next-generation vehicles and low-carbon technologies. The plan would ensure that Japan and America go on leading the world in these fields. A new framework for dialogue between the two countries is being considered, in order to ensure that the countries work together and deal with global issues like the world economy and the environmental problem.
Japan-America cooperation in regards to energy and the environment will have four pillars: (1) plans to popularize next-generation vehicles such as plug-in hybrid vehicles that can be charged using household electricity and electric cars, (2) innovative low-carbon technologies that will allow drastic reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, (3) expansion of the market for energy-efficient and new-energy products, and (4) the peaceful use of nuclear power.
Specifically, in order to popularize next-generation vehicles, the countries will carry out actual cooperative works to improve their infrastructure, as well as consider joint standardization for safety and plugs for high-speed charging.
Japan and America’s research institutes will collaboratively undertake research and development into fixed technologies such as burying CO2 emissions from factories in the ground, fuel cells, and high-powered solar batteries, in order to promote innovative low-carbon technologies. Energy-efficient technologies will aim for global development through model practices. The peaceful use of nuclear energy will serve the purpose of preventing nuclear proliferation in emerging countries that are even now moving forward with the introduction of nuclear power generation.

Welcome to the translation blog and portfolio of Jillian Nonaka. Take a look around and enjoy your stay. The Japanese readings and translations found in the blog section are done on the fly, so if you find any errors, please do let me know. Of course, comments, raves, questions, and pledges of undying love are always welcome, too.